# Scorched Pipe Rim—Here's One Reason Why



## Piper (Nov 30, 2008)

I've noticed that when the rim of my pipe gets scorched it's usually 12 o'clock position of the bowl furthest from stem. This can happen even when I'm trying to be very careful, avoiding wind gusts and using only soft-flame lighters. I'm not the only one this happens to. Many estate pipes I've acquired are scorched in the same area. And sometimes, when the bowl has been reamed to conceal this flaw, the chamber becomes slightly oblong. (See the photo below.)

This scorching seems to happen most often with a BIC lighter and least often with matches. Pipe lighters are intermediate. 

Here's why I think this happens. When I use matches I bring the flame atop the bowl perpendicular to the stem (at the 3 o'clock position). A match flame is cooler than a butane flame, of course, but I also have more control of the flame because I'm in no danger of burning myself and can take my time. With a lighter my thumb is close to the flame, which makes it almost impossible to hold the flame directly above the chamber the way I can with a match. And because it's less awkward to approach the pipe from the 12 o'clock position using a lighter, that's where the rim is most likely to get scorched. This is especially the case with a BIC lighter where the ignition wheel is very close to the flame and you have to hold down the lever to keep the thing lit. With a pipe lighter, you can get the flame going then hold it by the body further from the flame, although I don't always take the time to do that. 

Obviously, the risk of scorching increases when the tobacco takes longer to ignite, usually at the beginning or end of the bowl. 

Here's what I intend to try to do in future: (1)use wooden matches whenever possible, (2)avoid BIC lighters unless I can get in and out quickly, and (3)take the time to move my grip to the body of a pipe lighter, away from the flame, so I can approach the bowl from above. Of these, the third is the most important for me to try to remember.


----------



## OneStrangeOne (Sep 10, 2016)

Damn, now I have to go look and see if any of my pipes are actually scorched. I know mine collect a lot of soot on the rim but I don’t remember any actual burns, I use bic lighters at work and in the truck, I have made it a practice to hold the flame horizontally over the bowl and just draw the flame down instead of trying to angle the flame into the bowl.


----------



## OneStrangeOne (Sep 10, 2016)

Okay, here's a pair that get there share of abuse and then some,























So there's definitely some darkening on the back side of the rim, I've noticed that this is fairly consistent with most of my pipes as well as a fair amount of estate's that I've cleaned up. I've always thought that it was because of the way the smoke exists the bowl? I tend to clench so mine are angled down most of the time.


----------



## Piper (Nov 30, 2008)

Thanks for the feedback, Nathan @OneStrangeOne. I'm going to have to develop better muscle memory when lighting the pipe without paying close attention-either that or develop an asbestos thumb.:smile2:


----------



## Champagne InHand (Sep 14, 2015)

Frankly I just feel that it’s inevitable. I have some long matches but usually I’ll swan a bit of saliva on the rim during lighting. I can polish off most of the darkening but I’m not going to baby my pipes. 

Like Rachel DuBose on SP says I tend to smoke outside when walking, wind or no wind. I like the solitary nature of it or shared while dog walking. 

Matches are a big PITA even longer ones. The all reds smell for a bit and just don’t last long enough for a full light. I’m too impatient to do multiple matches so soft flame us what I do. These were made for smoking IMHO not for donation to the next generation. 

But that’s just salty old me. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


----------



## Piper (Nov 30, 2008)

Two things made me more careful with my pipes. One was buying estates—I really appreciated the pipes that were undamaged, both bowl and stem. Rim darkening ... no big deal. Neither is a little tooth chatter. But scorching and tooth marks are a bummer. The other thing that made me more conscientious was gifting some really old pipes to a brother on this forum—I'd cleaned them as best I could but I felt ashamed about how beat up they were.


----------



## Champagne InHand (Sep 14, 2015)

Piper said:


> Two things made me more careful with my pipes. One was buying estates-I really appreciated the pipes that were undamaged, both bowl and stem. Rim darkening ... no big deal. Neither is a little tooth chatter. But scorching and tooth marks are a bummer. The other thing that made me more conscientious was gifting some really old pipes to a brother on this forum-I'd cleaned them as best I could but I felt ashamed about how beat up they were.


I get that. But i have 2 pipes I use daily. I'm sure I've smoked that Peterson's Spigot much too hot but I like that it's turned Cats eye and my odd freehand rounded bottom acorn/pot from Charatan's which had some charring when I bought it. They will be mine forever. They certainly aren't ruined though.

I don't clench hard. Especially these days post dental surgery.

I too have given nice pipes to brothers. Almost always appreciated. However 3 have left the forum and one sold my gifts. I guess I understood that one case. The other being a Savinelli Autograph, maybe not as much.

I do like passing along pipes, especially nice ones I just don't use. I too clean them up to the best of my ability. I do think it's better to pass a pipe than to trade or sell it, unless I think I can do it and get most of it back.

I have a few I'm considering putting back on eBay. Every bit of good condition helps with sales price, but with very old stuff, the end buyer can always send it in for professional reconditioning.

I use a very light (high) grit sand paper from a headlight restoration kit to remove any char. It's worked very well, even on my Spigot. I still have a fully new Red Spigot in case the Cats Eye ever burns out. I like it that much. With the original green it's easy to see where Peterson's used some putty as when the Briar cures and ages these spots don't change. I figure that it's just the history of this particular pipe.

I still have several Charatan's that I need to break in an rotate. I'll keep these forever too, though I sent off the Calabash to a fine BOTL as it's begging for use and I have a nice Rhodesian that's very similar in style.

My biggest disappointment is in my high grade Ashton. Not so much that I had to add beeswax. I just prefer a thinner tapered end and feel I can get some ROI since I've only puffed it a few times. The Dunny Zulu is similar. Somebody should be thrilled to get a reissued County that has had little wear and with all the boxes. I'll keep my others, even the pencil shanked Opera. The 1965, that pre-dates even me, and the great smoking Bent Billiard.

However I'm not chasing pipes any longer. I'm really happy with what I have. I don't know if I'll ever break in the XL City of London Dublin freehand. It's got such a huge bowl

I'm also consider selling the Savinelli POTY 1987. Somebody should love that. It's just not for me as is the sandblasted egg, but I like it from a museum like piece just like the City of London. The others deserved to be smoked out of regularly.

I do try to care and clean my pipes, but figure that bit if top char happens even with wetting it down and being extra careful.

On one Dunhill n with ridged plateau top there is no real way to lightly sand any char or it would have been cleaned up to meet the rest of that pipes awesomeness. It's just how it is.

Now I'm trying to get down to one carousel of regular pipes and the 6er of Peterson's. I may pass on the Racing120 Dublin someday.

Once you find the kinds of pipes you love, it's easy to let go of the need to acquire more. At least in my case. The same goes for cigars.

I now know behind a doubt what I like on both sides of that coin. So I stock up on boxes of the same rather than trying every new blend.

Hopefully they won't get dc'd but if they do, I'll ration the remaining out.

Still I'm not going to absolutely baby the daily smoking pipes. That Spigot and Charatan have proven why they are so valued to me. They develop crusts, and really are solidly broke in. As for anything other than a stupid drop. I'm okay with that. I did drop my bent brandy Army mount. It shows it. Another Danish with ebonite just snapped and was destroyed.

I have the Briar if anybody wants to buy a replacement stem but I wasn't to keen on Danmore. It sure looked good, but was weird to pack and smoke anyway. It just looked so unique.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


----------



## ScottyB (Jun 13, 2018)

I always use a lighter of some type and light in a circular motion. When I was in the restoration business I repaired a lot of charred rims. The worst was a gorgeous Dunhill Bruyere 7 day set that the owner used a torch lighter on, really bad.


----------



## JohnBrody15 (Mar 20, 2016)

A lot of my pipes have some blackening on the rim, but I think only one, an estate, has some charring where the wood has burned away a bit. I'll have to look and see if there is any consistency to where the marks are on on each pipe. I feel like we have a mystery to solve now. Or actually, I'll put my teacher hat on, and say we are experiencing a phenomenon, and we must investigate. 

I always hold my pipe with my left hand, and place a match horizontal over the bowl, probably at about the 3 o'clock position. But then I'll circle the bowl. Although I wonder if with relights, I have to angle the match into the bowl because it's a paper match and I have to angle them because they tend to have a small flame. 

Makes me think wooden matches are probably a good idea. Even with relights you can still keep the match horizontal with the bowl and suck that fire down. Problem is, I have coffee cans filled with matches from garage sales, where you pay 50 cents for a ziplock full of old Vegas and Laughlin Casino matches. I keep a few for my collection but I use all the rest.


----------



## Cigary (Oct 19, 2007)

A good pipe lighter will take care of a charred rim...adjust your flame to the small side and I love my Old Boy Corona because of how its built for pipes. I let the fire hover over the bowl in the middle....almost touching the tobacco....click and draw for no more than 3 to 4 seconds...and voila'....the tobacco is burning and if I need to relight....I do the same thing. Exposing fire to the bowl for longer periods will scorch the rim....good pipe lighters like the Corona are worth every penny.

Let me add a tip I learned some time ago....once you have packed your bowl the way you like it ( don't fill the bowl to the rim....leave a good 1/4 of an inch below the rim which is why I like a deep bowl and not a short one ....to prevent the issue with burnt rims plus I like to have a good 40 minute session with my pipe ) and once it's packed I'll use the tamper to 'smush' it down a bit more and then use the pick to open up the middle of the tobacco all the way down to the bottom so when I light it the fire will follow the path of least resistance and start the combustion of tobacco. Let's be real about the rim being charred....we can't prevent it altogether because the heat from the combustion of the tobacco is going to waft up....it will have an effect over time in the darkening of the rim so to me that's just part of the charm of smoking a pipe.,,,,like the bluing on the chrome of my exhaust pipes on my motorcycle....it shows character and use.


----------



## Piper (Nov 30, 2008)

Champagne InHand said:


> I get that. But i have 2 pipes I use daily. I'm sure I've smoked that Peterson's Spigot much too hot but I like that it's turned Cats eye and my odd freehand rounded bottom acorn/pot from Charatan's which had some charring when I bought it. They will be mine forever. They certainly aren't ruined though.
> 
> However I'm not chasing pipes any longer. I'm really happy with what I have. I don't know if I'll ever break in the XL City of London Dublin freehand. It's got such a huge bowl
> 
> ...


Thanks for your thoughts @Champagne InHand. I agree with everything you've said. I have a few pipes that I tend to smoke more than the others. They all have more patina and not only am I totally okay with that, it's a big part of the reason I smoke them. For now I have all the pipes (and cigars) I need too. I still like to look now and then but am not tempted to buy.



Cigary said:


> A good pipe lighter will take care of a charred rim...adjust your flame to the small side and I love my Old Boy Corona because of how its built for pipes. I let the fire hover over the bowl in the middle....almost touching the tobacco....click and draw for no more than 3 to 4 seconds...and voila'....the tobacco is burning and if I need to relight....I do the same thing. Exposing fire to the bowl for longer periods will scorch the rim....good pipe lighters like the Corona are worth every penny.
> 
> Let me add a tip I learned some time ago....once you have packed your bowl the way you like it ( don't fill the bowl to the rim....leave a good 1/4 of an inch below the rim which is why I like a deep bowl and not a short one ....to prevent the issue with burnt rims plus I like to have a good 40 minute session with my pipe ) and once it's packed I'll use the tamper to 'smush' it down a bit more and then use the pick to open up the middle of the tobacco all the way down to the bottom so when I light it the fire will follow the path of least resistance and start the combustion of tobacco. Let's be real about the rim being charred....we can't prevent it altogether because the heat from the combustion of the tobacco is going to waft up....it will have an effect over time in the darkening of the rim so to me that's just part of the charm of smoking a pipe.,,,,like the bluing on the chrome of my exhaust pipes on my motorcycle....it shows character and use.


 @Cigary, I love my two Old Boys too. I have to take the time move my grip lower on the body after lighting it. Then it functions just like a match. Thanks for the tobacco-piercing tip. I'll try that. I often push the pick down the side of the chamber to free up obstructions to the draught hole but have never thought to improve the pathway for the flame. Totally agree about rim darkening. Not only does it add character (something I need augmented!) but it's easier than scorching to control or remove.


----------



## Cigary (Oct 19, 2007)

Another good tip is when packing your bowl.....twist the tobacco between your fingers and then pack ...this helps the combustion as the strands become entertwined making it easier for the tobacco to burn efficiently.


----------



## Piper (Nov 30, 2008)

@Cigary, I'll do that!


----------



## Piper (Nov 30, 2008)

ScottyB said:


> I always use a lighter of some type and light in a circular motion. When I was in the restoration business I repaired a lot of charred rims. The worst was a gorgeous Dunhill Bruyere 7 day set that the owner used a torch lighter on, really bad.


That guy should be in prison. Although if you could acquire an estate 7 day set heavily discounted because of scorching, it would be worth the cost of restoration. Scorching that resulted from a torch lighter, however, might weaken the chamber beyond repair.


----------



## Piper (Nov 30, 2008)

JohnBrody15 said:


> A lot of my pipes have some blackening on the rim, but I think only one, an estate, has some charring where the wood has burned away a bit. I'll have to look and see if there is any consistency to where the marks are on on each pipe. I feel like we have a mystery to solve now. Or actually, I'll put my teacher hat on, and say we are experiencing a phenomenon, and we must investigate.
> 
> I always hold my pipe with my left hand, and place a match horizontal over the bowl, probably at about the 3 o'clock position. But then I'll circle the bowl. Although I wonder if with relights, I have to angle the match into the bowl because it's a paper match and I have to angle them because they tend to have a small flame.
> 
> Makes me think wooden matches are probably a good idea. Even with relights you can still keep the match horizontal with the bowl and suck that fire down. Problem is, I have coffee cans filled with matches from garage sales, where you pay 50 cents for a ziplock full of old Vegas and Laughlin Casino matches. I keep a few for my collection but I use all the rest.


Yes, wooden matches are nearly fool proof. A pipe lighters is almost like a match if you hold it by its body after lighting it.

BTW, do your students know you collect estate paper matches? :grin2:


----------



## JohnBrody15 (Mar 20, 2016)

Piper said:


> Yes, wooden matches are nearly fool proof. A pipe lighters is almost like a match if you hold it by its body after lighting it.
> 
> BTW, do your students know you collect estate paper matches? :grin2:


I haven't told them yet, I'll probably hold onto to that one. Mainly because of the explaining I'd have to do. "Why Matches, what it is about fire, what do you do with them, do you smoke, why casinos, do you gamble, my dad gambles, one time he lost a bunch of money on a football game, my little brother plays with matches, one time he burned down our shed..."


----------



## Piper (Nov 30, 2008)

JohnBrody15 said:


> I haven't told them yet, I'll probably hold onto to that one. Mainly because of the explaining I'd have to do. "Why Matches, what it is about fire, what do you do with them, do you smoke, why casinos, do you gamble, my dad gambles, one time he lost a bunch of money on a football game, my little brother plays with matches, one time he burned down our shed..."


Hahaha. Do your students know you do standup in your spare time?


----------



## Hickorynut (Jun 26, 2017)

Piper said:


> Hahaha. Do your students know you do standup in your spare time?


I imagine today's students would take that quite literally and wonder why standing up is a thing......but I digress

Me caveman...use cheap pipe that smokes ok...no worry man.... 

Sent from the Stoopid Factory HR Dept....


----------



## JohnBrody15 (Mar 20, 2016)

Piper said:


> Hahaha. Do your students know you do standup in your spare time?


Yeah, it's 5 bucks to get into class plus a 2 milk minimum! :drum:

:grin2::grin2:


----------

